Isolated proteins having retinol dehydrogenase activity, and which associate with retinol binding receptors

ABSTRACT

Isolated membrane associated proteins which have a molecular weight of from about 30 kD to about 36 kilodaltons as determined by SDS-PAGE, are disclosed. The proteins have cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, such as 9, 11 or 13 cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, or cis activity at more than one position. Other trans-retinol dehydrogenases are also disclosed. Nucleic acid molecules which code for the proteins are also disclosed.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/729,594, filed on Oct. 11, 1996, which is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/562,114, filed Nov. 22, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,972,646 which is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/375,962, filed on Jan. 20, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,731, 195 which is a continuation-in-part of copending application Ser. No. 08/258,418, filed on Jun. 10, 1994, now abandoned. All of these applications are incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to proteins having retinol dehydrogenase activity, such as 9-cis, 11-cis or 13-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, or trans retinol dehydrogenase activity and which form complexes with a specific portion of a membrane receptor for plasma retinol-binding protein (RBP) expressed, e.g., in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), and, more specifically; proteins having cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, such as 9 or 11-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, which form complexes with RBP-binding membrane proteins such as the 63 kDa RBP binding membrane protein found in RPE cells. The invention also involves isolation of the proteins, as well as nucleic acid molecules coding p32 or complementary to coding sequences therefor, in addition to various applications of these materials.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Retinoids (vitamin A-derivatives) have important physiological functions in a variety of biological processes. During embryonic growth and development, as well as during growth and differentiation of adult organisms, retinoids act as hormones and participate in the regulation of gene expression in a number of cell types. See Lied et al. Trends Genet., 17:427-433 (1992). It is believed that these effects are mediated through two classes of nuclear ligand-controlled transcription factors, the retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and the retinoid X receptors (RXRs), Benbrook et al., Nature, 333:669-672 (1988); Brand et al., Nature, 332:850-853 (1988); Giguere et al., Nature, 330:624-629 (1987); Mangelsdorf et al., Nature, 345:224-229 (1990); Mangelsdorf, et al. Genes Dev. 6: 329-344 (1992); Petkovich et al. Nature 330:440-450 (1987); and Zelent et al., Nature 339:714-717 (1989).

Apart from their role as hormones in cellular growth and differentiation, retinoids are also involved in the visual process as the stereo isomer of retinaldehyde, 11-cis retinaldehyde, is the chromophore of the visual pigments. See, e.g. Bridges, The Retinoids,. Vol. 2, pp 125-176, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla., (1984).

Under normal physiological conditions most cells, both ocular and non-ocular, obtain all-trans retinol as their major source of retinoids. Despite the many different metabolic events taking place in different tissues, it is known that a common extracellular transport machinery for retinol has evolved. Specifically, in plasma, retinol is transported by plasma retinal binding protein (RBP). See Goodman et al., The Retinoids, Academic Press, Orlando Fla., Volume 2, pp. 41-88 (1984). The active derivatives of retinal, i.e., retinoic acid in non-ocular tissues and mostly 11-cis retinaldehyde for ocular tissues, are then generated by cellular conversion using specific mechanisms. To date, none of these mechanisms have been fully defined at the molecular level and several of the enzymes involved have only been identified by enzymatic activities. See Lion et al., Biochem. Biophys. Acta. 384:283-292 (1975); Zimmermann et al., Exp. Eye Res. 21:325-332 (1975); Zimmermann, Exp. Eye Res. 23:159-164 (1976) and Posch et al., Biochemistry 30:6224-6230 (1991).

Polarized retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE) are unique with regard to retinoid uptake since all-trans retinol enters these cells via two different mechanisms. Retinol accumulated from RBP is taken up through the basolateral plasma membrane, while all-trans retinal, presumably taken up from the interstitial retinol-binding protein (IRBP) following bleaching of the visual pigments, may enter through the apical plasma membrane. See Bok et al., Exp. Eye Res. 22:395-402 (1976); Alder et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 108:1601-1608 (1982); Lai et al., Nature 298:848-849 (1982); and Inu et al., Vision Res. 22:1457-1468 (1982).

The transfer of retinol from RBP to cells is not fully understood. In a number of cell types, including RPE, specific membrane receptors for RBP have been identified, which is consistent with a receptor-mediated uptake mechanism for retinol. For example, isolated retinol binding protein receptors, nucleic acid molecule coding for these receptors and antibodies binding to the receptor have been taught, in references relating to the first of the two mechanisms. See Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 266:14978-14985 (1991); Bavik, et al. J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 1992; Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:20-540-20546 (1993); and copending U.S. Application Ser. No. 083,539 and International Publication WO 93/23538, all of which are incorporated by reference herein. See also Heller, J. Biol. Chem. 250:3613-3619 (1975); and Bok et al., Exp. Eye Res. 22:395-402 (1976).

Retinol uptake on the apical side of the RPE for the regeneration of 11-cis retinaldehyde is less well characterized. Regardless of the origin of all-trans retinol, however, the synthesis and apical secretion of 11-cis retinaldehyde seems to be the major pathway for accumulated retinol in the RPE. At present, it is not known whether similar mechanisms are used with regard to cellular retinol uptake through the basolateral and the apical plasma membranes. Available data do show that functional receptors for RBP are exclusively expressed on the basolateral plasma membrane of RPE-cells. Bok et al., Exp. Eye Res. 22:395-402 (1976).

It is also known that pigment RPEs express a 63 kDa protein (p63). This molecular weight, and all others, is by the refernce to SDS-PAGE, unless stated otherwise. It has also been shown by chemical cross-linking that this protein may be part of an oligomeric protein complex which functions as a membrane receptor for plasma retinol-binding protein (RBP) in RPEs, or a component of the retinoid uptake machinery in RPE cells. See Bavik et al, J. Biol. Chem. 266:14978-14875 (1991); Bavik et al., J. Biol, Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992), and U.S. Application Ser. No. 083,539 and PCT application WO93/23538. The p63 protein has been isolated and the corresponding cDNA cloned. See Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:20540-20546 (1993). Homologous molecules which bind to retinol binding proteins have been identified in other tissues, such as the liver. However, there is nothing in these references suggesting the existence of the protein which is a feature of this invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with this invention, proteins having retinol dehydrogenase activity which have a molecular weight of from about 30 to about 36 kD, as determined by SDS-PAGE, have now been discovered. These proteins form oligomeric protein complexes with the previous described components of the membrane receptor for RBP, such as the p63 molecule discussed supra. Also disclosed are nucleic acid molecules which code for these proteins. Sequence analysis shows that the proteins belong to the family of short chain alcohol dehydrogenases, and exhibit cis retinal dehydrogenase activity such as 9 or 11-cis retinol activity, the enzyme which catalyzes the stereospecific conversion of 9 and/or 11-cis-retinol into corresponding retinaldehydes in the presence of cofactor NAD+. In addition, other members of the short chain alcohol dehydrogenase family are disclosed, which have all trans-retinol dehydrogenase activity.

As will be shown, the proteins have many important uses. For example, owing to its membrane bound retinol dehydrogenase activity, which catalyzes the conversion of cis-retinols to cis-retinaldehydes, a major metabolic step in retinoid metabolism in RPE-cells, retinoid accumulation and metabolism which may lead to retinitis pigmentosa, may be directly or indirectly tied to the presence of these proteins, and/or their activation or inhibition. As the proteins have also been found to be members of the short chain alcohol dehydrogenase super family, many known alcohol dehydrogenase inhibitors (and activators) are available to develop activity assays, and thus diagnostic materials for retinol uptaken and retinoid metabolism.

Also a part of this invention are nucleic acid molecules which encode mammalian forms of the proteins, such as the human, bovine, and murine forms. Also a part of the invention are probes, based upon the nucleotide sequences described herein.

These and other aspects of this invention are more fully discussed in the following Detailed Discussion with accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A shows SDS-PAGE analysis of radiolabeled protein from RPE-membranes and immunoprecipatation with mAb A52 against p63.

FIG. 1B shows SDS-PAGE analysis of RPE-membrane proteins bound and eluted through a mAb A52 immunoaffinity column, and the presence of a protein in accordance with the invention, in the eluted faction from the immunoaffinity column.

FIG. 2A shows visualization in agarose gel electrophoresis of a 61 bp PCR-amplified fragment using oligonucleotide mixtures OM1 and OM3, both derived from peptide 321 deduced from partial amino acid sequence determination of trypsin digested protein.

FIG. 2B shows visualization of a 330 bp PCR-amplified fragment using oligonucleotide mixtures OM2 and OM3, derived from peptides p323 and p321, respectively, as deduced from partial amino acid sequence determination of the trypsin digested protein of figure 2B.

FIG. 3 illustrates the nucleotide sequence of pλ321 and the deduced amino acid sequence of the protein of FIGS. 2A and 2B, with the partial amino acid sequences determined from peptides isolated from the trypsin digested protein (SEQ ID No:10).

FIG. 4 illustrates amino acid sequence alignments of the protein and some related proteins belonging to the family of short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases (SEQ ID NOS. 10, 11, 12 and 13).

FIG. 5 illustrates analysis of the amino acid sequence of the protein under investigation.

FIG. 6 illustrates membrane interaction of p32 synthesized in vitro.

FIG. 7 illustrates the restricted expression of transcripts corresponding to the DNA encoding the protein.

FIG. 8A illustrates expression of the protein in transfected cells for further enzymatic activity analysis of 11-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity.

FIG. 8B illustrates the expression of 11-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity in the presence of NAD+ as indicated by the formation of 11-cis retinaldehyde.

FIG. 8C illustrates the lack of 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity in the presence of cofactor NADP.

FIG. 8D illustrates control cells not expressing the protein which lack the ability to oxidize 11-cis-retinol into 11-cis-retinaldehyde.

FIG. 9 shows the structure of the human 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase gene.

DETAILED DISCUSSION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

It is known that plasma retinol binding protein (RBP) can be chemically cross-linked to a high molecular weight complex of a 63 kDa protein (p63) receptor of retinal pigment epithelium membranes (RPE), forming an RBP-RBP receptor complex with elution properties of globular proteins of similar sizes having apparent molecular weights of approximately M_(r) 150,000 and 450,000. See Bavik et al, J. Biol. Chem. 266:14978-14875 (1991), and Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992). The protein responsible for binding of RBP, expression of which is restricted to RPE, has been identified as a 63 kDa protein (p63). Through the generation of a monoclonal antibody A52 (mAb A52) to the 63 kDa protein which binds the RBP-RBP receptor complex and p63, and immunoaffinity chromatographic analysis, a majority of p63 is eluted as a monomer, with a significant portion of the protein found in positions corresponding to higher molecular weight species. This indicates that p63 exists in an oligomeric protein complex with other protein components. Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 266:14978-14985 (1991), and Bavik et al, J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992). Therefore, the following procedure was carried out to investigate the molecular characteristics of such oligomeric protein complexes, and whether p63 forms a complex with other proteins specific to RPE. The results show that a 32 kDa membrane associated protein referred to hereafter as p32 indeed forms a complex with p63.

EXAMPLE 1

Bovine RPE-cells were isolated and membrane fractions were prepared as described in Bavik et al, J. Biol. Chem. 266:14978-14875 (1991) incorporated by reference. RPE-membrane proteins were then solubilized in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (20 mM sodium phosphate, PH 7.2, containing 150 mM NaCl), containing 1% 3-[(3-cholamido-propyl) -dimethylammonio] -1-propane sulfonic acid (CHAPS) at 1 mg of total membrane protein/ml of buffer. Remaining material was removed by ultracentrifugation at 100,000×g for 1 hour. Next, 500 ul aliquots of the solubilized membranes were subjected to gel filtration on a Sepharose 6 column equilibrated in PBS containing 1% CHAPS. The column was operated at a flow rate of 0.2 ml/min and 500 ul fractions collected. Proteins eluted in fractions corresponding to globular proteins of M_(r) 150,000 to 400,000 were then radiolabelled with Na¹²⁵I using the well-known Chloramin T procedure. Non-incorporated ¹²⁵I was removed by gel filtration on Sepahadex G-25 packed in a Pasteur pipette.

Aliquots of the radiolabelled proteins were then diluted in PBS containing 1% CHAPS and 1% bovine serum albumin and subsequently subjected to immunoprecipitation using the mAb A52 to p63 (5 ug per incubation) or using two polyclonal rabbit antisera to p63 (3 ul of serum per incubation) See Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992). Non-specific immunoprecipitation was monitored in parallel incubations using an unrelated mAb and preimmune rabbit serum. Fifty ul of a 50% slurry of protein A-Sepharose was added to the incubations for 30 minutes. The beads were subsequently carefully washed with PBS containing 1% CHAPS and the eluted material then prepared for SDS-PAGE analysis, which was carried out according to Blobel et al. J. Cell. Bio. 67:835-851 (1975).

Referring now to FIG. 1A, autoradiograms of the SDS-PAGE gels showed that both types of reagents reacted with p63, whereas the unrelated mAb or preimmune rabbit serum did not precipitate p63. In all lanes containing immunoprecipitated p63 there was an enrichment of a M_(r) 32,000 protein. Since both mAb A52 and the rabbit antisera to p63 are highly specific for p63 (See, for example, Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992)), it can be concluded that the M_(r) 32,000 protein (p32) coprecipitated in the aforesaid analysis by binding to p63. The analysis also identified a double band of M_(r) 50,000-52,000 which precipitated along with p32 and p63 (FIG. 1 d, e).

EXAMPLE 2

Experiments were then carried out to identify p32. Advantage was taken of the fact that p32 specifically interacts with p63 as shown supra. Thus, detergent solubilized RPE-membrane proteins were passed over an immunoaffinity column containing mAb A52. Referring now to FIG. 1B, lane b, following a washing procedure, bound proteins were eluted at high pH in a CHAPS-containing buffer, and SDS-PAGE analysis and Coomassie staining of the eluted fractions revealed p63 to be specifically retained and eluted from the immunoaffinity column. Further, a weekly stained band corresponding to p32 could be visualized in the eluate from the A52 column. As shown in FIG. 1B, a comparison of the total protein profile of solubilized RPE membranes and the eluted fraction from the A52 column show that the p32 protein is not efficiently retained therein. However, the appearance of p32 in the eluted fraction from the A52 column, but not in the eluted fraction from the column containing an unrelated Ig, indicate a specific interaction of p32 with p63. This result is consistent with previous immunoprecipitation data, and shows that p32 is complexed to p63 and is retained on the immunoaffinity column due to this complex formation.

Following identification of p32 as a component of a complex with p63 in RPE-membranes, the p32 protein itself was isolated by SDS-PAGE of eluted fractions of solubilized RPE-membranes from the A52 immunoaffinity column, as set forth below in Example 3.

EXAMPLE 3

RPE-membranes were solubilized in PBS containing 1% CHAPS as set out above and then incubated with mAb A52 Ig coupled to CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B beads (Pharmacia) in a Bio-Rad poly prep column (Bio-Rad) by end-over-end rotation at +4° C. Following a 2 hour incubation, the beads were allowed to settle and the column was quickly washed with 5 column volumes of PBS containing 1% CHAPS. Bound proteins were then eluted with 50 mM triethanolamine buffer (pH 11.2) containing 1% CHAPS. The pH of the eluate was quickly adjusted to 8.0 by the addition of 1 M Tris-HCl buffer containing 1% CHAPS. The eluted fractions were subjected to SDS-PAGE, and the separated proteins then visualized by Coomassie Blue staining. A band corresponding to p32 (SDS-PAGE, 32kDa), was found.

To determine the primary structure of p32)partial amino acid sequence analysis of the isolated protein was undertaken by first cutting out a portion of the aforesaid Coomassie stained band corresponding to approximately 2-5 ug of the 32kDa protein, then lyophilizing the gel piece to dryness. The gel was rehydrated in buffer containing modified trypsin and incubated to generate various peptides for extraction and analysis. A preferred procedure is set forth below in Example 4.

EXAMPLE 4

Coomassie stained bands containing the p32 protein from Example 2 were excised and treated according to Rosenfeld et al. Anal. Biochem. 15:173-179 (1992) with minor modifications. The gel pieces were washed twice for 30 min at 30° C. with 100 ul of 0.2 M ammonium bicarbonate buffer containing 50% acetonitrile and thereafter completely dried under a stream of nitrogen. The gel pieces were subsequently rehydrated with 5 ul of 0.2 M ammonium bicarbonate buffer containing 0.02% Tween 20 and 0.5 ug of modified trypsin. Trypsin was added from a stock solution prepared in 1 mM HCl. Rehydration was continued by the addition of 5 ul portions of the 0.2 M ammonium bicarbonate buffer until the gel pieces rehydrated to their original sizes. The rehydrated gel pieces were then incubated overnight at 30° C. Protease activity was inhibited by the addition of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) to a final concentration of 1%. The supernatant was recovered and combined with two extracts made with 150 ul of 0.1% TFA in 60% acetonitrile. The organic phase was reduced, and the digest was subjected to HPLC using a reverse phase mRPC C2/C18 SC 2.1/10 column operated in a SMART system. The sample was eluted with a gradient of acetonitrile in 0.065% TFA and fractions containing discrete peptides were collected using the automatic peak fractionation option. Five of the identified peptides were selected for amino acid sequence analysis using an ABI 470A sequencer equipped with a model 120A PTH analyzer (applied Biosystems Inc. Foster City, Calif.). The results are set forth below in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Amino acid sequences determinations of five peptides isolated from trypsin diqested p32. p321 L-V-E-A-V-L-A-E-V-L-P-K-P-A-Q-T-V-A (SEQ ID NO:1)    (D)^(a)      (W)                 (Y) P322 Y-S-P-G-W-D-A-K (SEQ ID NO: 2) P323 T-P-V-T-N-L-E-T-L-E-D-T-L-Q-A (SEQ ID NO: 3) P324 D-V-A-P-F-G-V (SEQ ID NO: 4) P325 L-H-T-T-L-L-D-V-T-D-P-Q-S-I (SEQ ID NO: 5) ^(a) The amino acid residues given within the parentheses are the residues deduced from the cDNA sequence in the same positions.

Protein SEQ ID NOS: 1-5 can be used alone or ligated to haptens by well known methods.

Next, to determine the complete primary structure of p32, four degenerative oligonucleotide mixtures, OM1-OM4, as set forth below in Table 2 were synthesized based on the amino acid sequences of the p321 and p323 sequenced peptides of Table 1. The procedure is as follows in Example 5.

EXAMPLE 5

Four degenerate oligonucleotide mixtures derived from peptides p321 and p323 were synthesized using well-known techniques. The two sense mixtures (OM1 and OM3) were derived from the N-terminal amino acids 1-5 of p321 and 2-6 of p323. The antisense mixtures (OM2 and OM4) were derived from amino acids 12-17 of p321 and 10-15 of p323. All nucleotide mixtures were synthesized with a 4 bp 5′ extension and an Eco RI-site for subsequent cloning of the PCR products. The sequences of the oligonucleotide mixtures are set out below in Table 2, and the Eco RI-site is underlined. Positions containing all four bases are marked N.

TABLE 2 OM1:ACGT GAA TTC TN GTN GA(A,G)GCN GT (SEQ ID NO: 6) OM2:ACGT GAA TTC AC NGT(T,C)TG NGC NGG(T,C)TT (SEQ ID NO: 7) OM3:ACGT GAA TTC CCN GTN ACN AA(T,C) (C,T)T (SEQ ID NO: 8) OM4:ACGT GAA TTC GC(T,C)TG NA(A,G)NGT(A,G)TC(T,C)TC (SEQ ID ND: 9)

Single stranded “complementary” cDNA from reverse transcribed RPE mRNA and four combinations of the above-described degenerate nucleotide mixtures were employed in polymerase chain reactions (PCR) using a standard procedure. Following the amplification procedure, aliquots of the PCR reaction products were analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis. The procedure is set out below in Example 6.

EXAMPLE 6

To carry out the PCR amplifications, first strand cDNA was synthesized by standard procedures using avian myelostosis virus reverse transcriptase. Twenty ug of total RNA from isolated RPE-cells were used and the reaction was primed with oligo (dT) 15. Aliquots corresponding to 2 ug of total RNA was used in each subsequent PCR reaction. The PCR reactions were performed using a final concentration of 0.5 uM of the oligonucleotide mixtures in a 100 ul reaction. Taq polymerase was used. Following 30 cycles (2 minute at 95° C., 1 minute at 55° C. and 2 minute at 72° C.), aliquots of the reactions were analyzed on 4% GTG agarose gel containing 5 ug/ml of ethidium bromide.

As shown in FIG. 2A, amplifications using the oligonucleotide mixtures OM1 and OM2, both derived from peptide p321, resulted in an amplified 61 bp fragment. Amplifications using mixtures OM3-OM4 and OM1-OM4 failed to yield any products. Finally, as shown in FIG. 2B, amplification using OM3-OM2 resulted in an amplified 330 bp fragment.

Subsequent sequence analysis of the 61 bp and 330 bp fragments confirmed that cDNA sequences had been amplified which corresponded to the peptide sequences generated in the previous amino acid sequence analysis. Differences between the deduced amino acid sequences from amplified PCR fragments and the generated amino acid sequence of peptide p321 indicates the generation of specific probes suitable for the isolation of full length cDNA clones encoding p32.

To isolate a full length cDNA clone, an RPE-specific lambda ZAP-II cDNA library was screened with the 330 bp fragment as the probe. Five independent lambda clones were isolated from approximately 200,000 clones, and subcloned by in vivo excision. The cDNA clone pλ321 contained the longest insert, (approximately 1.1 Kb), and was selected for use in further studies.

Both strands of pλ321 were fully sequenced with the insert being 1104 bp long, excluding linkers used to prepare the cDNA library. The procedure is set out below in Example 7.

EXAMPLE 7

The amplified products using OM1-OM2 (61 bp) and OM3-OM2 (330 bp) were digested with EcoRI, gel purified and cloned into EcoRI-cut vector pBS. The ³²P-labelled 330 bp fragment was used to screen an RPE-specific λZAP II cDNA library as previously described by Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:20540-20546 (1993), incorporated by reference. Five positive λ clones were isolated and the inserts were subcloned in pBluescript by in vivo excision following the manufacturer's instructions. Clone pλ321 contained an insert of 1.1 Kb, and both strands were fully sequenced using Sequenase with T3, T7 or M13 universal primers or with internal primers.

The nucleotide sequence of pλ321 and the predicted amino acid sequence of p32 are shown in FIG. 3 (SEQ ID NO: 10). Nucleotides are numbered on the left and amino acid residues on the right. Amino acid 1 is initial methionine (“Met”).

As shown in FIG. 3, the 1.1 kbp insert contains one long open reading frame encoding 318 amino acid residues with a calculated mass of 35,041D. The first methionine residue lies in a good context according to the Kozak rules for transcription initiation and is likely to be the initiation codon. See Kozak, Cell, 44:283-292 (1986). This inference is strengthened by the fact that in vitro translation of synthetic mRNA transcribed from pλ321 gives rise to a M_(r) 32,000 protein (SDS-PAGE analysis), as set out below, but there is no stop codon in frame in the upstream 35 bp 5′-untranslated region of the cDNA. As also shown in FIG. 3, the 100 bp 3′-untranslated region ends with a putative polyA-tract, and a polyA-signal was identified in-the upstream sequence (bp 1104-1110).

The deduced amino acid sequence pλ321 and the amino acid sequences of the five generated tryptic peptides (Table 1) differ in only 3 positions out of the 62 residues available for a comparison. All 3 differences are found in the peptide p321 but the nucleotide sequence in this region of a second cDNA clone (pλ324) is identical to that of pλ321. This indicates that the amino acid sequence determination of peptide p321 was probably incorrect although it cannot be excluded that the differences are due to the presence of different alleles of p32. These data demonstrate that pλ321 contains the complete coding-region of p32.

Again, referring to FIG. 3, a consensus sites for N-linked glycosylation (amino acid residues N-I-T) could be found in the deduced amino acid sequence at position 160-162.

Additionally, it has been found that p32 shows sequence similarities to short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases. Referring now to FIG. 4 a search through the Swissprot protein data base revealed that p32 is structurally related to several previously sequenced proteins. It is most closely related to a mitochondrial matrix dehydrogenase, the D-β-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (BDH) Churchill et al; Biochem. 31:3793-3799 (1992) and shows less but significant similarities to two other proteins, the 3-oxoacy[acyl carrier protein] reductase from E. coli (Rawlings et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267-5751-5754 (1992)) and the human estradiol 17 β-dehydrogenase (Peltoketo et al., FEBS Lett., 239:73-77 (1988) and Leu et al., Mol. Endocrinol. 3:1301-1309 (1989)). All the related proteins fall into the protein super-family of short-alcohol dehydrogenases. This protein superfamily comprises approximately 50 different proteins (Persson et al, Eur. J. Biochem, 200:537-593 (1991)). The overall sequence homology between p32 and BDH is around 39%. The level of homology to the E. coli reductase and to the estradiol 17-β-dehydrogenase is lower (31% and 33%, respectively).

Optimal multiple alignment identified several conserved regions shared by p32 and the most closely related proteins (boxed areas in FIG. 4). The first region involving residues 63-69 (using the numbering in FIG. 4) which displayed the conserved motif G-X-X-X-G-X-G is believed to be the binding site for cofactors NAD, NADP or their reduced forms. Another conserved region is found between residues 148-153 (consensus sequence L-V-N-N-A-G) but no functional characteristics have yet been attributed to that sequence motif. The sequence motif Y-X-X-X-K, thought to be the active site, is the most highly conserved motif in short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases and is present in p32 residues 175-179, See Persson et al., Eur. J. Biochem, 200:537-593 (1991). These similarities demonstrate that p32 exhibits several features of a functional short-chain alcohol dehydrogenase.

As shown in FIG. 5, hydropathy analysis of the amino acid sequence of p32 reveals several hydrophobic stretches, indicating that p32 is a membrane-associated protein. The first 18 amino acids are hydrophobic, and this region has characteristics of a classical signal sequence. However, a consensus site for signal peptidase cleavage could not be identified. See Von Heijne, Nucl. Acid Res., 14:4683-4690 (1986). The amino acids between residues 130 to 150 are hydrophobic and there is a relatively long hydrophobic stretch near the C-terminus of the protein. Thus, p32 a displays several hydrophobic regions which are potential membrane spanning segments. In light of the homology to the family of short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases as shown above, it is likely that the central hydrophobic region of p32 (residues 130-150) is not used as a membrane anchor. Instead, both the N-terminal and the C-terminal regions are potential membrane anchoring domains.

To determine the mode of interaction of p32 with membranes, p32 was synthesized by in vitro translation using a reticulocyte lysate system with mRNA transcribed from linearized pλ321. The procedure is set out in Example 8 below.

EXAMPLE 8 Expression of P32 by in Vitro Translation

In vitro transcribed mRNA encoding p32 was synthesized from linearized pλ321 using T7 RNA polymerase. In vitro translation reactions were carried out using nuclease treated rabbit reticulocyte lysate following the manufacturer's instructions. Fifty ng of mRNA was included in each reaction, with or without the addition of dog pancreatic microsomes. To isolate membrane inserted p32, the microsomes were collected by centrifugation at 10 12,000×g for 10 min at 4° C. The microsomes were carefully resuspended in PBS and recentrifugated.

As shown in FIG. 6, translation in the presence of dog pancreatic microsomes showed that p32 becomes almost quantitatively membrane associated and migrates as a M_(r) 32,000 species in SDS-PAGE. Translation in the absence of acceptor membranes similarly yields a M_(r) 32,000 protein. These data indicate that the N-terminal hydrophobic sequence acts as a signal sequence but it is not removed by the signal peptidase, and such supports the previous observation that a consensus site for signal peptidase cleavage could not be identified in the deduced primary sequence.

The tissue expression of p32 was analyzed by Northern blotting analyses using total RNA isolated from bovine RPE, liver, kidney, adrenal, lung, testis, brain and muscle. The procedure is set out in Example 9.

EXAMPLE 9 Northern Blot Analyses

Twenty ug of total RNA-isolated from a number of tissues was electrophoresed on a 1% agarose under denaturing conditions and transferred to a Hybond-N nylon filter. The filter was hybridized with ³²P-labelled full length cDNA encoding p32 under stringent conditions. The details of the isolation of total RNA, hybridization conditions and washing procedure were identical to those previously described in Bavik, et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:20540-20546 (1993).

Hybridization at high stringency with the 1.1 Kb insert of pλ321 as the probe, revealed abundant expression of transcripts corresponding to p32 only in RPE but not at a detectable level in several other tissues. The size of the major transcript was 1.4 kb but other less abundant transcripts could be visualized after prolonged exposure of the filters both in RPE as well as in other tissues.

EXAMPLE 10 Expression of p32 in COS-cells and Enzymatic Analysis of the Properties of Recombinant P32.

p32 was first expressed in COS-cells using a eukaryotic expression vector, and then microsome fractions from transfected cells and control cells were subjected to immunoblotting analysis to verify the expression of p32 at the desired levels, as follows:

Specifically, the EcoRI—insert of pλ321 was cloned into the EcoR1-digested eucaryotic expression vector pSG5. See Green et al., Nucl. Acid Res. 16:39 (1988). COS-cells were maintained in Dulbecco's minimal essential medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 2mM glutamine and antibiotics. The cells were seeded into 60 mm petri dishes (4×10⁵ cells per dish) and transfected with 5 ug of plasmid per dish using DEAE dextran. Control cells were transfected with equal amounts of the parental vector alone. After treatment with 10% DMSO for 2 minutes, the cells were incubated for 72-96 hours, and then harvested by scraping the dishes with a rubber policeman, and the cells thereafter collected by low speed centrifugation. The collected cell pellets were next resuspended in hypotonic buffer (10 mM Tris-HCl, pH 7.5 containing 1mM phenyl-methylsufonyl fluoride), put on ice for 20 minutes, and then homogenized using a Dounce homogenator. Unbroken cells and debris were removed by centrifugation (3000×g)for 15 minutes. Microsomes were subsequently collected by ultra-centrifugation at 100,000×g for 1 hour; membrane pellets were stored at −80° C. until further analyzed.

Antisera to p32 were generated by injecting rabbits with p32 (amino acid residues 19-318) expressed as a fusion protein with GST. The bacterial expression vector PGEX 2T was used and GST-fusion protein was induced and purified, as recommended by the supplier (Pharmacia). Each rabbit received a subcutaneous injection of 75 ug of fusion protein emulsified in Freunds complete adjuvant. The rabbits were boostered with 50 ug of fusion protein emulsified in Freunds incomplete adjuvant every second week. Blood was collected every second week. The immune rabbit sera were passed over a column containing GST fusion-protein immobilized on CNBr activated Sepharose beads. Bound Ig was eluted with 0.1 M sodium citrate buffer (pH 3.0), containing 0.5 M NaCl. To remove Ig to the GST portion of the fusion protein, the eluted Ig was similarly incubated with GST-coupled Sepharose beads and the unbound Ig fraction was used. For immunoblot analysis of the over expressed protein, the Ig was used at a concentration of 1 ug per ml. The details of the immunoblotting procedure are described in detail in Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem., 267:23035-23042 (1992) the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.

As shown in FIG. 8A, the above procedure resulted in expression of p32 in cells transfected with the recombinant expression vector, but not in control cells that were mock transfected.

Next, some of the enzymatic properties of p32 expressed in COS-cells were determined in a manner similar to that as described in the study of 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity in microsomal fractions of RPE cells. See Saari et al., Anal. Biochem 213:28-13226 (1993).

In particular, enzymatic activity of p32 was assayed by incubating the microsomal fractions from the aforementioned transfected cells, and from control cells lacking p32, with varying combinations of the different stereo isomeric substrates, i.e., 11-cis-retinol or all-trans-retinol, in the presence of either cofactor NAD+ or NADP.

To prepare the substrate, 11-cis retinol was synthesized from 11-cis-retinaldehyde using sodium borohydride, as set forth in Heller et al., J. Biol. Chem. 248:6308-6316 (1973), and stored under argon at 80° C. HPLC analysis confirmed the quantitative reduction of 11-cis-retinaldehyde to 11-cis-retinol, and all manipulations with the retinoids were done under subdued lighting conditions.

To assay for p32 activity in transfected cells, the final concentration of 11-cis-retinol and all-trans-retinol (obtained from Sigma Chemical Co.) in the incubations was reduced to 100 uM. Twenty ug of total membrane protein from COS-cells expressing p32 or from control cells were used in each incubation, and thereafter a 30 minute incubation at 37° C. in the presence or absence of NAD+ or NADP followed. Reaction mixtures were then extracted with n-hexane, and organic phases removed and dried under argon. The dried organic phases were then separately dissolved in ethanol and aliquots were analyzed on a normal phase silica HPLC column developed with n-hexane containing 4% dioxane at 1 ml per minute. See Saari et al. J. Biol. Chem. 257:13329-13333 (1982). Effluent was monitored at 330 nm. Under these conditions, 11-cis-retinaldehyde and 11-cis retinol eluted at 7 minutes and 22.5 minutes, respectively, and all-trans-retinaldehyde and all-trans retinol eluted at 8 minutes and 23 minutes, respectively.

As indicated in FIG. 8B, the aforementioned HPLC analysis shows that fractions from transfected cells containing p32 expressed 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase protein which was active in the presence of NAD+, as indicated by the formation of 11-cis-retinaldehyde. A second peak in the chromatogram is all-trans retinaldehyde; however, control incubations with 11-cis retinaldehyde, in the absence of cellular membranes, show that, under the test procedure employed, a large amount of 11-cis retinaldehyde isomerizes to all-trans retinaldehyde. This indicates that the appearance of all-trans retinaldehyde is due to its generation during the incubation process used and extraction procedures, and is not an enzymatic reaction product. Further, incubations with all-trans retinol with cells containing p32 verify the stereo specificity of the enzyme, as no significant formation of all-trans retinaldehyde is detected.

As shown in FIG. 8C, p32 is not enzymatically-active in the presence of cofactor NADP.

In FIG. 8D, assays of the control cells not expressing p32 show that these do not oxidize 11-cis-retinol into 11-cis-retinaldehyde.

Therefore, the above shows conclusively that p32 is a stereo specific 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase, which relies on NAD+ as its cofactor. In further experiments, it was established that the p32 molecule also has 9-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity.

EXAMPLE 11

Following the work described supra, using bovine materials, additional experiments were carried out to isolate and to clone a human sequence.

A cDNA library from human eye, in λgt11 was purchased from a commercial supplier (i.e., Clontech). The bovine cDNA described supra, i.e., SEQ ID NO: 10, was used as a probe. The cDNA was ³²[P] dCTP labelled by random priming to a high specific activity (about 10⁹ cpm/μg of DNA).

The labelled bovine cDNA was then used to probe the human cDNA library. Conditions were as follows: hybridization in 6×SSC, 0.5% SDS, 5×Denhardt's solution, 25% formamide, at 68° C., with 100 μg/ml of salmon sperm DNA, followed by four washes of 2×SSC, 0.5% SDS, at 65° C., for 30 minutes each, and then a final wash at 2×SSC at 42° C. for 30 minutes.

When a positive cDNA was found, the insert (i.e., the cDNA), was excised following the manufacturer's instructions, and then subcloned into the commercially available vector pBluescript. The sequence of the insert was then determined, using well known methods. The sequence of 1128 nucleotides is set forth at SEQ ID NO: 14. The corresponding amino acid sequence of 318 residues is se forth in SEQ ID NO:15.

EXAMPLE 12

In further experiments, the information described in example 11, supra, was used to study and to analyze bovine neuroretina and murine 10 day embryos. Murine embryos were used because, apart from the general usefulness of the system for studying developmental biology, retinol dehydrogenases are extremely active in development. The model is extrapolatable to human development.

RNA (5-10 μg), was isolated from bovine neuroretinas, or from murine 10 day embryos, using well known techniques. The RNA was mixed in 4 μl of 5×AMVRT buffer, together with 4 μl of dNTPs from 5mM stock solutions, 2 μl of oligo dT (18mer, at a final concentration of 10 μM), together with 0.5 μl RNAse inhibitor, and 2 μl of avian myelostosis virus reverse transcriptase (10U). The final volume was 20 μl. This resulting mixture was incubated at 42° C. for 30 minutes, and then left on ice until used.

PCR was then carried out. In the PCR, two μl of cDNA were used. Primers were designed on the basis of the deduced amino acid sequence for bovine cDNA set forth supra. The following conserved amino acid sequences were noted:

A) Cys Asp Ser Gly Phe Gly B) Pro Gly Trp Asp Ala C) Glu Ala Phe Ser Asp D) His Pro Arg Thr

“A” corresponds to amino acids 36-41 of SEQ ID NO:12. “B” is found at amino acids 283-287 of this sequence. “C” is found at positions 183-187, and “D” at positions 276-279. “Conserved” as used herein refers to conservation between the deduced sequence, the sequence for liver RDH shown by Chai, et al. J. Biol. Chem 270: 3900-3904 (1995), incorporated by reference in its entirety, and Simon, et al, J. Biol. Chem 270: 1107-1112 (1995), also incorporated by reference.

Degenerate oligomers were prepared. In a first set of PCR experiments, degenerate oligos based upon A and B were used as primers, i.e.:

5′-A C G T G A A T T C T G Y G A Y T C N G G N W T Y G G-3′ (SEQ ID NO:16)

5′-A C G T G A A T T C T T N G C R T C C C A N C C-3′ (SEQ ID NO:17) as forward and reverse primers respectively. The primers were mixed with the two μl of cDNA discussed supra. Conditions were 1 minute of denaturation at 94° C., 1 minute of annealing at 50° C., and two minutes at 72° C., for elongation. This constituted 1 cycle. Twenty-five cycles were carried out.

Following the first PCR, 5 μl samples of PCR product were combined with primers based upon “C” and “D,” i.e.:

5′-A C G T G A A T T C G A R G C N T T Y T C N G A-3′ (SEQ ID NO:18)

5′-A C G T G A A T T C C G N G T N C K N G G R T G-3′ (SEQ ID NO:19) as forward and reverse primers, respectively. Conditions were exactly as used in the first set of experiments, except that the annealing temperature was 55° C.

Reaction products were analyzed on 1.5% agarose gels with ethidium bromide. The assumption was that the amplification products should be about 300 base pairs in length. As such, any 300 base pair bands visualized confirmed that the PCR protocol generated products of appropriate size. The experiments were repeated, using 1% low melting point agarose gels, and the PCR products were eluted therefrom. The isolated products were reamplified, using the same protocols, and were cloned into plasmids (TA cloning kit, Invitrogen). The plasmid DNA was prepared from transformants using standard protocols, and then analyzed by restriction digestion, using EcoRI. Any inserts of about 300 base pairs were analyzed further, using vector specific primers. The PCR products are presented in SEQ ID NOS: 20-23 with deduced amino acid sequences being presented as SEQ ID NOS: 24-27. SEQ ID NOS: 20 and 24 correspond to bovine sequences, while all others are murine sequences. In these nucleotide sequences, the first base (“C”) is an artifact of the experiment, resulting from cleavage by a restriction endonuclease. Hence, one begins with the second nucleotide base in determining the deduced amino acid sequence. Further, note that sequences corresponding to the degenerate oligos, which would normally be included at the 5′ and 3′ termini, are not included.

EXAMPLE 13

The PCR product set forth in SEQ ID NO: 21 was then used in further probing experiments.

A murine 8.5 day cDNA library (in λgt10), was screened, using randomly labelled SEQ ID NO: 21, where the hybridization took place in 6×SSC, 0.5% SDS, 5×Denhardts's solution, 50% formamide at 42° C., with 100 μg/ml of salmon sperm DNA, followed by one wash at 2×SSC, 0.5% SDS at 50° C. for 30 minutes. A positive cDNA clone was identified, subcloned into pBluescript, and sequenced. The nucleotide sequence, and deduced amino acid sequence, are set forth as SEQ ID NOS: 28 and 29.

EXAMPLE 14

Following the work described, supra, the human cDNA was used to probe a human genomic library. The probe was prepared by PCR and randomly labelled as described supra. The primers used in the PCR were derived from the cDNA sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14 and were as follows:

Forward primer:

5′-G C T T C G G G C G C T G T A G T A-3′ (SEQ ID NO:30) and

Reverse Primer:

5′-A A A A C A A T C T C T T G C T G G A A-3′ (SEQ ID NO:31)

PCR was carried out by denaturing at 95° C., followed by annealing at 55° C., and elongation at 72° C. 2-5U of Taq polymerase and 0.2 μM of each primer were used. Thirty cycles were carried out.

The amplified fragment of 1056bp was isolated, following agarose gel electrophoresis analysis and cloned into vector PCR (commercially available from Invitrogen). This probe was used to screen a human genomic library in λFXII vector, from Stratagene. The manufacturer's instructions were followed to screen approximately 1×10⁶ plaque forming units. 10⁶ cpm/ml of hybridization solution was used. Hybridization was carried out overnight with 6×SSC, 0.5% SDS, 5×Denhardt's solution, 50% formamide at 42° C., with 100 μg/ml of salmon sperm DNA, followed by one wash at 1×SSC, 0.1% SDS at 50° C. and a final wash at 0.5×SSC, 0.1% SDS at 65° C. Each wash was for 30 minutes. Several positive plaques were isolated, rescreened, and λDNA prepared, using the glycerol step gradient method described by Sambrook et al. Molecular Cloning, A Laboratory Manual (2d edition, 1989), incorporated by reference.

The isolated genomic clones were sequenced by analyzing fragments obtained following PCR reactions, using 100 mg of genomic λ clones per reaction as templates. To carry out the PCR, different primers, derived from the cDNA sequence of SEQ ID NO:11 were used in two PCR reactions, numbered ‘one’ and ‘two’.

Specifically, the primers used in PCR reaction one were

SEQ ID NO:30, supra (forward primer) and

5′-C T C A G G C T G T C A G A G A A G G C C T-3′ (SEQ ID NO:32) (reverse primer)

The primers used in PCR reaction two were

5′-G A C G A T T T C C A G C G G G T G C-3′ (SEQ ID NO:33) (forward primer) and

SEQ ID NO:31, supra

PCR was carried out by denaturing at 95° C., followed by annealing at 55° C. and elongation at 72° C. 2-5U of Taq polymerase and 0.2 μM of each primer was used. Thirty cycles were carried out. The amplified fragments from reactions one and two, were 2.2 kb and 2.5 kb respectively. Each fragment was cloned into vector PCR commercially available from Invitrogen.

Sequence analysis of the cloned fragments using vector specific primers or internal primers, permitted identification of exon-intron boundaries.

The structure of the gene is presented in FIG. 9.

EXAMPLE 15

Studies were carried out to identify the location of the gene on chromosomes.

To do this, high molecular weight DNA was isolated from human leuckoytes, Chinese hamster cells, murine liver cells, and from hamster/human and mouse/human somatic hybrid cell lines. These hybrid cell lines each retained one human chromosome, as well as rodent genomes.

The isolated DNA was digested with Hind III, fractionated on agarose gel via electrophoresis, and then transferred to a nylon filter. These were then probed, using the human cDNA described supra, labelled as described supra.

Slides of chromosomes were prepared from lymphocyte cultures, using art recognized techniques. The λDNA from 3 genomic clones were mixed and labelled with biotinylated 16-dUTP, by nick translation. A centromere specific probe for human chromosome 12 centromere (obtained from the ATCC, under Accession Number D12Z1), was labelled with fluoro-red-dUTP, following the manufacturer's instructions. Pre-annealing of the probes, pretreatment of the slides, hybridization conditions, signal amplification, and detection, were in accordance with well known techniques. Chromosomes were counter-stained with 4,6 diamino-2-phenyl indole (DAPI), and signal was visualized using a fluorescence microscope.

Analysis of all of these data indicated that the gene which encodes the human form of p32 spans more than 4 kilobases, and is divided into 4 coding exons, which range from 165 to 342 base pairs in length. Further, an exon was found in the 5 untranslated region, and the length of the last coding exon has not been established. Introns range in size from 250 base pairs to 1.9 kilobases. FIG. 9 shows this schematically.

Study of exon/intron boundaries showed that all splice donor and acceptor sites follow the well known, canonical GT/AG rule. The Initiation codon and the conserved cofactor binding site are encoded by exon 2, while the active site, with invariant tyrosine residue, is encoded by exon 3. The gene maps to chromosome 12q13-14.

EXAMPLE 16

The work set forth in example 12 was extended, using the nucleic acid molecules set forth in SEQ ID NOS: 21 and 22.

A commercially available source of murine, multiple tissue Northern blots was used. Specifically, the nucleic acid molecules set forth in SEQ ID NOS: 21 and 22 were labelled with ³²p, using standard methodologies. These labelled probes were then used to determine relative expression levels of transcript in murine tissue samples, using standard Northern blotting protocols. Blots were hybridized, overnight, at 42° C., using 50% formamide, 6×SSPE buffer, 0.5% SDS, 2×Denhardt's solution, 100 ug/ml salmon sperm DNA, and 1×10⁶ cpm/ml of labelled probe. Blots were washed at room temperature, twice, for 30 minutes per wash, using 2×SSC and 0.1% SDS, followed by two further washes, at 50° C., in 0.1×SSC containing 0.1% SDS for 20 minutes. Blots were exposed at −70° C., overnight, using intensifying screens, and Kodak film. Abundant expression of a 1.4 kilobase transcript was observed by visual inspection as follows:

PROBE Tissue SEQ ID NO: 21 SEQ ID NO: 22 Heart − − Brain − ++ Spleen − − Lung − − Liver +++++ +++++ Skeletal Muscle − − Kidney +++ +++ Testis − −

EXAMPLE 17

In view of the results of example 16, murine liver was used in the experiments which are described in this example. A murine liver cDNA library was prepared in λZAP, using standard protocols. Probes, as described in example 16, supra, were used to screen the library. Specifically, manufacturer's instructions were followed for plating the library and preparing the filters. Prehybridization was carried out at 42° C., in 50% formamide, 6×SSPE buffer, 2×Denhardt's solution, 100 ug/ml salmon sperm DNA. The filters were then hybridized, using 1×10⁶ cpm/ml of hybridization-solution. Following overnight hybridization, filters were washed twice, in 2×SSC containing 0.1% SDS, (30 minutes per wash, at 52° C.), followed by two, 20 minute washes in 0.1×SSC containing 0.1% SDS, at 52° C. Filters were then exposed, as described supra. Any positive clones were rescreened, twice, until all plaques on a plate were positive. Inserts from several, positive clones were subcloned into plasmid pBluescript SK(+), using standard procedure by in vivo excision. Several of the resulting clone were sequenced.

When SEQ ID NO: 21 was used as a probe, three different cDNAs were identified. These are presented as SEQ ID NOS: 32, 33 and 34, herein. When SEQ ID NO: 22 was used, a full length clone, i.e., SEQ ID NO: 35 was found in one of the aforementioned plasmids. Amino acid sequences deduced therefrom are presented as SEQ ID NOS: 36-39, respectively. Proteins corresponding to SEQ ID NOS: 36-38 may have all trans activity,

5′-A C G T G G A T C C C C G C C T T C A T T C C G A A C A-3 (SEQ ID NO: 43) due to homology with known all-trans acting RDHs

EXAMPLE 18

The insert corresponding to SEQ ID NO: 35 was observed to be about 1.2 kilobases long. The actual sequence (1146 nucleotides) was close to this estimate. This clone was used in the experiments which follow.

The plasmid containing SEQ ID NO: 35 was linearized, using well known methods (BamHI endonuclease was used). Then, mRNA corresponding to SEQ ID NO: 35 was synthesized, using standard methods. The resulting mRNA was used, at 50 ng/reaction, in an in vitro translation system as described in the previous examples, in the presence of ³⁵S. Microsomes were pelleted by centrifugation, and then subjected to SDS-PAGE analysis.

A band of about 34 kilodaltons was found in the in vitro translation product when priming with mRNA corresponding to SEQ ID NO: 35 was carried out. No such band was observed with non-primed microsome systems. These results demonstrate that the protein encoded by SEQ ID NO: 35 is a membrane associated protein having a molecular weight of about 34 kilodaltons, as determined by SDS-PAGE.

The hydropathy profile of the deduced amino acid sequence for SEQ ID NO: 35, i.e. SEQ ID NO: 39, was almost identical to that for known membrane associated 11-cis retinol dehydrogenases. Further studies were then carried out to determine the properties of this protein.

EXAMPLE 19

In order to generate a protein from a eukaryotic system, a 1.2 kilobase EcoRI fragment of the SEQ ID NO: 35 plasmid described supra was subcloned into a baculovirus expression vector, using known methods. Then, the vector was used to transfect Spodoptera frugiperda (“Sf9”) cells, again using known methods. Recombinant baculoviruses were then amplified by several rounds of amplification, and were then used in fresh Sf9 cells. A parallel set of experiments were also carried out, but using recombinant virus containing an unrelated gene, whose expression product had no retinol dehydrogenase activity.

Expressed protein was then assessed for enzyme activity. In brief, membranes equivalent to 25 ug of total membrane protein from infected cells were incubated in phosphate buffered saline (PBS), containing 100 uM of 9-cis retinol, or all-trans retinol. Final volumes of incubated materials were 200 ul. Either cofactor NAD+ or cofactor NADP was also added, to a final concentration of 200 uM. The mixture was incubated for 20 minutes at 37° C., after which alkaline ethanol was added. The mixture was then extracted with 2.0 ml of n-hexane. The organic phase was then removed and dried under argon. Dried phases were dissolved in ethanol, and aliquots were analyzed by reversed phase HPLC, using a C₁₈ column, and a mobile phase of acetonitrile/water (85:15 v/v). Elution was at 1.0 ml/min, with effluent being monitored at 350 nm.

9-cis-retinaldehyde was one of the eluted products when NAD+ was present. Background levels 9-cis retinaldehyde were found with NADP which were comparable to the levels in mock infected cells. The mock infected cells also showed some 9-cis retinaldehyde, suggesting an endogenous, but not purified or characterized, 9-cis RDH. The cells which expressed the protein encoded by SEQ ID NO: 35 oxidized 9-cis retinol more than 8-10 times as efficiently as the mock cells.

In experiments not elaborated upon herein, 11-cis RDH activity was also observed for the protein, as was 13-cis RDH activity.

EXAMPLE 20

A series of experiments were then carried out to study the expression of SEQ ID NO: 35 in early mouse embryos.

Transcripts were taken from 9, 11, 13 and 15 day murine embryos, in the same way described supra. RT-PCR was then carried out, using the same conditions, as given supra, but in a two step procedure.

In the first step, a reaction was carried out using:

5′-T A G C T G G T A T C A T C G G G C C C A-3′ (SEQ ID NO: 40) and

5′-A G A A A C C A G G C A G C A C T G G-3 (SEQ ID NO: 41)

while CRABPI transcripts were amplified using:

5′-C-A C G T G G A G A T C C G C C A G-3′ (SEQ ID NO: 42) and ACGTGGATCC CCGCCTTCAT TCCCGAACA (SEQ ID NO: 43).

While glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) was amplified using:

5′-G G G T A T C G T G G A A G G A C T C A T G A C-3′ (SEQ ID NO: 44) and

5′-A T G C C A G T G A G C T T C C C G T T C A G C-3′ (SEQ ID NO: 45) respectively. Aliquots were taken, and then reamplified. In the second amplfication, SEQ ID NO: 41 was replaced by:

5′-G C T G G T C A C C T T C G T T A G T T C-3′ (SEQ ID NO: 46)

Amplified bands were analyzed on a 1.5% agarose gel, and visualized with ethidium bromide. A 420 base pair band was indicative of the RDH encoded by SEQ ID NO: 35, while one of 210 bases was indicative of CRABPI, and one of 190 bases for GAPDH. The results indicated that the transcript was present during a large part of murine gestation.

Thus, as shown above, this invention provides a method for the isolation and characterization of retinol dehydrogenases, such as all-cis and all-trans retinol dehydrogenases which are membrane bound, may associate with components of retinol binding protein receptors, such as p63 of RPE cells and have a molecular weight of from about 30 to about 36 kilodaltons, as determined by SDS-PAGE. These enzymes have 9, 11, and 13-cis retinol dehydrogenase activity, and may have other properties inherent thereto. The primary structure of these proteins demonstrates that they have all the critical features of functional short-chain alcohol dehydrogenases, including a putative cofactor binding site and essential residues involved in the catalytic mechanism, namely the almost invariant tyrosine containing sequence motif Y-X-X-X-K (Persson et al., Eur. J. Biochem. 200:537-543 (1991)). The restricted tissue expression and the abundance of protein in RPE, such as p32 indicates that these proteins may carry out functions unique to the RPE. This possibility, and the fact that they can form complexes with p63, which previously has been shown to be a component of the retinoid uptake machinery in RPE-cells (Bavik, et al., J. Biol. Chem. 267:23035-23042 (1992)), shows that the substrate for the proteins is a retinoid. Wider tissue expression of short chain, alcohol dehydrogenase family members suggests that these molecules have additional functions.

A major metabolic step in retinoid metabolism in RPE-cells is the conversion of 11-cis retinol to 11-cis retinaldehydes. Based on the results obtained hereinabove showing the expression of the proteins in the RPE, and the particular biochemical properties of these proteins, further investigation confirmed that the proteins are in fact 9 and 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenases, which are enzymes which catalyze this reaction.

Thus, one aspect of the invention is the ability to produce recombinant 9 and 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenases. The recombinant enzyme can be used to produce 9 and 11-cis-retinaldehydes in levels higher, and in purer form, than would be available using standard biochemical methodologies. Thus, the isolated nucleic acid molecules of the invention, which include SEQ ID NO: 35, as well as those nucleic acid molecules which hybridize to SEQ ID NO: 10 under stringent conditions can be used in this context. By the term “stringent conditions” is meant hybridization in 6×SSC, 0.5% SDS, 5×Denhardt's solution at 68° C., with 100 ug/ml of salmon sperm DNA, and a final wash with 0.5-1.0×SSC at 50° C. The term is also used herein to refer to any set of parameters which are at least as stringent as those set forth above. As is well known, equally stringent conditions can be created by changing one parameter to make it less stringent, with another parameter being changed to increase its stringency. Thus, any nucleic acid molecule which fulfills the hybridization criteria set forth herein will be expected to code for a relevant cis-retinol dehydrogenase. The enzymes may be produced in an in vitro system, such as the one described above, or via transfecting or transforming eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell lines, such as CHO and COS cells, Spodoptera frugiperda or bacterial strains such as E. coli or the yeast strain S.cervisiae with the nucleic acid molecules of the invention. In an especially preferred embodiment, the nucleic acid molecules are contained within an expression vector, operably linked to a promoter. Complementary DNA, or “cDNA” is preferred, but genomic DNA and mRNA can also be used.

The identification of the retinol dehydrogenases, as members of the short-chain alcohol dehydrogenase superfamily is important in view of the retinoid-metabolism which occurs in non-ocular tissues. Studies show that generation of all-trans retinoic acid from all-trans retinol is carried out in a two step process (Posch et al., Biochemistry 30:6224-6230 (1991)). First, retinol is oxidized to retinal by a membrane bound retinol dehydrogenase. In a second step, the retinal is oxidized to retinoic acid. Thus, the oxidation of retinol into retinal, occurring in non-ocular tissues, is similar to the reaction carried out during synthesis of 11-cis retinal from 11-cis retinol in the visual cycle. In light of these similarities, it can be proposed that formation of all-trans retinal from all-trans retinol is carried out by an enzyme which is structurally similar to the retinol dehydrogenases of this invention. These findings are surprising in contrast to presently held views as it is generally believed that this metabolic step is carried out by members of the medium chain alcohol dehydrogenases. See Duester, Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. 15:568-572 (1991); Yang et al., Alcohol Clin. Exp. Res. 17:496 (1993) and Zgombic-Knight et al., J. Biol. Chem. 269:6790-6795 (1994). Thus the identification and structural characterization of the cis-retinol dehydrogenases, provided by this invention, also provide a previously unexpected avenue for the isolation and characterization of similar dehydrogenases involved in retinol metabolism is non-ocular tissues.

The proteins and nucleic acids encoding therefor and other aspects of this invention are also useful in many other important applications. For example, as it has been shown that p32 is part of an oligomeric protein complex which functions as a membrane receptor for RBP in RPE-cells, nucleic acid molecule encoding therefor can be used in a phenotypic/genotypic diagnostic analysis to determine retinoid accumulation, which can lead to retinitis pigmentosa.

Additionally, as shown, the proteins of the invention possess at least 9 and 11-cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity, which catalyzes the conversion of 9 and 11-cis retinol to 9 and 11-cis-retinaldehyde, the latter being a major metabolic step in retinoid metabolism in RPE-cells carried out by a membrane bound dehydrogenase. Thus, retinoid accumulation may be directly or indirectly tied to the presence of one or more of these proteins and/or its activation or inhibition, for example, complex formation with components of the RBP receptors p63, such as, but not only, p63 of RPE.

In other applications the effect of potential retinoid drugs for treatment of various diseases on the 9 and 11-cis-retinal dehydrogenase activity of the proteins of the invention may be assayed, as such drugs may adversely effect the enzyme, and to thus determine which of the different drugs have limited or no adverse effect on enzyme activity.

Examples of such diseases include those of the eye and also skin disorders such as psoriasis and acne. Certain cancers such as T-cell leukemias may also be tested by retinoid drugs and hence be candidates for assaying retinol dehydrogenase activity.

The various known functions of retinoids also suggests that various other retinoid linked pathological conditions may be diagnosed via assays for levels of the p63/cis-retinol dehydrogenase receptor complexes associated with a particular retinol binding protein. Art recognized techniques may be used, such a immunoassays, and so forth, to determine whether complex levels are too low or too high—i.e., are at variance with a normal level.

Further, as the cis-RDHs complex with the p63 component of the retinoid uptake machinery in RPE cells, they may also be used in a therapeutic context, as it is well known that soluble receptors may be used to prevent binding of a protein to its membrane-linked receptor. Thus, a subject characterized by enhanced levels of production of retinol binding protein may be treated via administering an amount of soluble receptor complex or antibody sufficient to inhibit binding of the retinol binding protein or other related molecule to its target, namely, an inhibitor of cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity. Other aspects of the invention will be clear to the skilled artisan and need not be repeated here.

In yet another application, monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies to these proteins can be generated, which are useful, inter alia, in monitoring the instance of pathological conditions characterized by aberrant levels of a receptor for retinol binding protein, by binding analysis of the antibody with body fluid or tissue samples. The generation of antibodies to the proteins of the invention can be accomplished, for example, by using the procedure set out in Bavik et al., J. Biol. Chem. 268:20540-20546 (1993) for the generation of antibodies to p63, including mAb A52.

The terms and expressions which have been employed are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. As isolated human or murine protein which has 11 cis-retinal dehydrogenase activity, a molecular weight of from about 30 to about 36 kilodaltons as determined by SDS PAGE, and is obtainable from retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) membranes.
 2. The isolated protein of claim 1, which is a human protein.
 3. The isolated protein of claim 1, having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:
 15. 4. The isolated protein of claim 1, which also has 9 cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity.
 5. The isolated protein of claim 1, which also has 13 cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity.
 6. An isolated protein which has 11 cis-retinol dehydrogenase activity and a molecular weight of from about 30 kilodaltons to about 36 kilodaltons as determined by SDS-PAGE, having the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 36, SEQ ID NO: 37, SEQ ID NO: 38, or SEQ ID NO:
 39. 